Man charged with stealing $200,000 worth of cheese

Published: Thursday, March 28, 2013 3:15 p.m. CDT

By Geoff Ziezulewicz, Chicago Tribune (MCT)

CHICAGO — In what could be one of the Chicago area’s stinkiest crimes, an Illinois man was charged this week in connection with the theft of a semi trailer containing 42,000 pounds of Muenster cheese with a street value of $200,000.

Veniamin Balika, 34, of Plainfield, was arrested Tuesday afternoon by New Jersey State Police as he loitered at a New Jersey turnpike rest stop, according to police spokesman Lt. Stephen Jones.

The Muenster cheese, packed into six-pound loaves and into 1,135 cases, had originated at K&K Cheese in Cashton, Wis., Jones said.

Its final destination was Texas, he said, but somewhere along the line, Balika “cheesed” some paperwork and took off with the precious cargo.

“He was believed to have used false information to go to the distributor’s warehouse and pick up the load,” Jones said.

It was unclear Thursday where Balika picked up the cheese.

Police in Romeoville reported the theft of a truck containing cheese on March 18, but that was listed as having been worth about $1,300.

An informant initially tipped off New Jersey police that Balika was looking to offload the hot cheese, Jones said.

Plainclothes detectives trailed him and arrested him at the Vince Lombardi Service Area, not far from New York City, Jones said.